How Kenya can boost agricultural productivity with fertiliser subsidy

Ayalew, Hailemariam. 2024. How Kenya can boost agricultural productivity with fertiliser subsidy. Business Daily Africa. First available on March 24, 2024. https://www.businessdailyafrica.com/bd/opinion-analysis/columnists/how-kenya-agricultural-productivity-with-fertiliser-subsidy--4567466

Kenya has a long history of implementing fertiliser subsidy programmes aimed at supporting smallholder farmers.

These initiatives have evolved over the years, from targeted programmes for resource-poor farmers to broader, non-targeted schemes like the the National Fertiliser Subsidy Programme (NFSP) implemented in 2022 to boost food production and stabilise prices in the wake of global supply chains disruptions related to the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the Covid-19 pandemic.

The NFSP provides subsidised fertiliser to all registered farmers, with the quantity allocated based on the size of registered land holdings.

To assess the impact of the NFSP on farm productivity, researchers collected data in main maize producing counties and conducted appropriate econometric analysis to isolate the effect of fertiliser subsidy on maize yield by accounting for other factors such as seed, rainfall, access to credit, irrigation, gender, education, etc.